The Empowered Parent with Dana Baltutis
Welcome to the Empowered Parent Podcast! This is your space to grow your confidence and skills in communicating, interacting, and understanding your children—so you can become the empowered parent you are destined to be.
In each episode, I speak with inspiring parents, therapists, and community leaders who truly understand the joys and challenges of parenting. Together, we explore a treasure trove of information and practical ideas for you to try at home.
We cover topics like:
- Celebrating neurodivergence
- School readiness
- The power of play
- Managing behaviors with compassion
- Discovering your and your child’s unique profiles
- Stories of parents finding strength and purpose through their parenting journey
This podcast is for all parents. It’s a place to build community and a sense of belonging—a space where you can ask questions, connect with others, and learn from experts who work with children every day.
Our goal is to empower you to:
- Learn more about yourself as a parent
- Take time for your own growth and well-being
- Discover new tools and resources to raise happy, confident kids
- Nurture your self-confidence in parenting
Let’s work together to make the world a better, more understanding, and compassionate place for everyone—young and old!
Don’t forget to like and subscribe on your favorite podcast app. I’d love to hear your topic suggestions and guest speaker ideas. Reach out via danabaltutis.com or join my Facebook community: My Therapy House And Friends Empowered Parent Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/583062577433444
Let’s connect, grow, and thrive together!
The Empowered Parent with Dana Baltutis
Episode 63: (Nikita Pinto Speech Pathologist) : The Pre-Linguistic Journey: How Children Master Communication Before First Words
Speech Pathologist Nikita Pinto reveals the critical pre-linguistic skills children need to develop before they can speak their first words. These foundation skills are essential building blocks that support all future communication development.
• Reacting to sounds and people in the environment forms the basis of listening and understanding
• Responding to people and turn-taking establishes the back-and-forth pattern essential for conversation
• Attention span is crucial as children need to stay focused to absorb language information
• Joint attention allows children to share experiences with caregivers about objects or events
• Playing with toys provides exploration opportunities and contexts for language learning
• Understanding familiar words precedes the ability to speak them
• Vocalizing and making different sounds develops into first words
Parents often focus exclusively on getting their child to say words, missing the importance of building connection first. Children need to hear words repeatedly in different contexts for approximately six months before they can use them meaningfully. Using facial expressions, animated voices, and body language ("affect") helps captivate children's attention and makes words "stick."
Instead of asking lots of questions, provide information by commenting and naming things in your child's environment. Use the "four-to-one rule" - offer four pieces of information before asking one question.
danabaltutis.com, mytherapyhouse.com.au, https://mytherapyhouse.com.au/your-childs-therapy-journey/ https://www.danabaltutis.com/services
